CSI Miami: The Littlest CSI
by CelticLady00
Summary: Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.
1. Chapter 1

**CSI Miami – The Littlest CSI**

_By: Celtic Lady_

**Genre: **Humor

**Pairing(s): **None

**Chapter(s):** 1 of 8

**Characters: **General cast plus Madison Keaton.

**Rating: **T (age 13+)

**Summary: **Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.

**Author's Notes: **Everyone liked my other Madison story so much I thought I'd write another one. And of course, I just couldn't resist picking on Stetler a little. Oh, and this story has Alexx Woods as the Medical Examiner – not the new girl.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own the characters so please don't sue. If the real owners want to use anything from my story (yeah, wishful thinking), go ahead, you can have it for free. :-)

* * *

Horatio was more than happy to take his niece, Madison, for a week while her mother attended a conference in Washington, D.C. He was getting use to baby sitting the little tike and always enjoyed their time together - she was like the daughter he never had. In anticipation of their time together, Horatio had put in for a week of vacation with the understanding that if the work load got too bad, he'd find a way to come in to work.

In the hopes that Madison wouldn't get homesick, Horatio had several things planned with his little house guest. Madison had wanted desperately to go to the zoo and see the penguins so that was first on the list.

As they walked along the zoo grounds, Madison's smile never left her face as she ran ahead of Horatio, eager to see what the next enclosure contained. She was so in awe of everything. At each exhibit, she would ask him what the animal was and Horatio would read the descriptive plaque for her.

"Horsey's!" Madison exclaimed as she jumped up on the railing of the fence.

Horatio smiled as he corrected her, "Zebras Madison. They're Zebra's from Africa."

Madison laughed as she pointed, "Look! There's a baby."

"Yeah." Horatio replied to her. He found her astonishment so refreshing and even entertaining.

Madison then ran to the next exhibit to see what she could find. Horatio had his hands full just keeping up with her. He knew he was going to get a workout that day.

As she ran into the Reptile House, Horatio had to yell at her to wait up. She impatiently urged him, "C'mon. C'mon. There's stuff in here." She motioned for Horatio to hurry and couldn't understand why he wasn't as excited as her.

Once inside, Horatio was able to catch his breath as Madison began looking at the glass displays of different reptiles until suddenly, her eyes got wide in amazement. "Uncle Ratio – A dinosaur!"

She pointed to the 8 inch lizard who was putting on a display. The lizard had a flap of skin around it's neck that it could fan out making it look just like some of her plastic dinosaurs at home.

Horatio smiled at her comment as he read the plaque. "It's a Frilled Lizard from New Guinea."

"Wow!" She exclaimed. Her attention quickly turned to the next exhibit and then the next.

Their next stop was the monkey house. Horatio was sure she'd have fun there. As they walked along, they came upon the Orangutan exhibit and Madison stood there looking at them for the longest time. Horatio couldn't understand what her fascination was and finally asked her.

"Their hair looks just like your's," she explained.

"Hmmm." Horatio couldn't help but laugh at her knowing that she had just implied that he had hair like an Orangutan. Only Madison could get away with a comment like that. "I think your hair is that color too, if I remember right." He rubbed his chin as he pretended to think.

Little by little, they made their way to the penguins. Madison had her nose pressed against the glass for several minutes as she watched them swim back and forth.

"I like that one!" She pointed to a smaller penguin sitting on the bank watching all the others. After some time, Horatio was finally able to get her out of there and took her to a gift shop. She walked up and down all the isles until she found it – a stuffed penguin.

"Please? Can I have this? Please?" She pleaded. Horatio couldn't resist and said okay. They picked out some other toys as well and Horatio paid for them. He got her a beach kit, for making sand castles, since he knew the beach was on his to-do list as well and some rubber snakes, bugs, and lizards that she seemed fascinated with.

"Now don't leave any of these in my bed. I mean it." He had a funny feeling he'd find them there anyways.

As the middle of the day was coming near, Horatio could feel the heat. He was sure glad to be in shorts and a short sleeve shirt instead of a suit. While he was standing in a long line for some food and drinks, his phone rang.

"This is Horatio Caine." He listened for several minutes and tried to steer the person to Eric Delko or Calleigh Duquesne but the caller wanted him and no one else. Horatio had no choice but to run by the office and see what Stetler wanted.

"Madison, I need to go by work for a minute okay. So we'll get something to eat around there." He hoisted her up and walked to his car and put her in her car seat. Horatio put the bag of toys next to her as he climbed in and drove away. While he was driving, Madison rummaged through the bag and pulled out the stuffed penguin and the plastic animals. Horatio kept a watchful eye on her in his rear view mirror.

As soon as he arrived at the crime lab, Horatio took Madison and made a bee-line to Stetler's office. "What did you need Rick?" Horatio asked as he stood in Stetler's doorway with Madison in his arms.

Stetler frowned upon seeing Horatio had a child with him. He wanted to yell at him about something but didn't want to frighten the kid.

"I need to talk to you about the chop shop." Stetler stood to face Horatio and nervously wiped the palm of his hand across his mouth. "Some of the cars were there for repairs and the owners want them back."

Horatio sighed, "How many?"

"One in particular."

"Let's walk over and talk to Eric and see what the status is on that car." Rick followed Horatio downstairs to the garage where Eric was processing a partially dismantled car.

Horatio sat Madison down over to the side and out of the way while the three men discussed the case. It didn't take little Madison long to get bored so she decided to go back upstairs by herself. Horatio didn't seem to notice she was gone.

She walked along the hallway looking at all the colorful lights and the many people behind the glass walls doing their work. Every now and then, she'd stop and press her nose against the window and watch them. Then she'd pretend she was reading a plaque telling what that particular animal was for her penguin friend.

"Pengy, this is a Zebra Lizard from Guinea Pig." She held the stuffed penguin up so he could see.

Then she'd move down the hall to the next pretend cage and repeat the process. Once she reached the end of the hallway, the game was over and she proceeded on her journey. She eventually found herself back at Rick Stetler's office and went inside. While she was waiting for her uncle Horatio, she decided to climb into Rick's chair to sit and make herself comfortable. This enabled her to have a full view of his desk and she immediately saw the computer screen and keyboard. Mimicking what she saw other people do, Madison pretended to type a letter as she struck as many different keys as she could not realizing she had hit the overtype key and every letter replaced one of the screen. Before long, Rick's unsaved memo was gibberish and she turned her attention elsewhere.

Madison realized that Rick didn't have any fun stuff on his desk at all, like other people did, so she figured she'd give him one of her toys. Madison was sure he'd like that – after all, she was always taught to share. She looked at her collection of plastic animals and pulled out a bright purple snake with yellow and blue polka dots on it and put it next to his keyboard. Pleased with herself, she decided to go look for her uncle as she was ready to go now.

It didn't take her long to find him as he and Rick were returning to Stetler's office. When Horatio spotted her in the hallway, he picked her up and told Rick to be patient as he left.


	2. Chapter 2

**CSI Miami – The Littlest CSI**  
_By: Celtic Lady  
_

**Genre: **Humor  
**Pairing(s): **None  
**Chapter(s):** 2 of 8  
**Characters: **General cast plus Madison Keaton.  
**Rating: **T (age 13+)

**Summary: **Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.

**Author's Notes: **Everyone liked my other Madison story so much I thought I'd write another one. And of course, I just couldn't resist picking on Stetler a little. Oh, and this story has Alexx Woods as the Medical Examiner – not the new girl.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own the characters so please don't sue. If the real owners want to use anything from my story (yeah, wishful thinking), go ahead, you can have it for free. :-)

* * *

Rick Stetler had failed to mention to Horatio that the car was his and he wanted it back. That was the real reason he was so adamant about getting the vehicle released. He had left the car at the garage for the owners to find a mysterious noise he kept hearing. He wanted the noise gone. When he left the car there, he had no idea the place was a chop shop for stolen cars.

When Rick returned to his office, and walked behind the desk to sit down, he immediately saw the snake and panicked.

He instinctively grabbed his keyboard and began beating it against the rubber snake until it was obliterated.

"What the . . ." He looked closer at the snake and realized it wasn't real. Someone had obviously played a joke on him. It was then that he became aware that his keyboard was damaged in the altercation.

"Oh great!" Rick immediately called Emmie Stockburne.

"Miss Stockburne, I need a new keyboard."

She had obviously asked him what happened to the old one when Rick fumed back, "It's broke!"

Emmie knew that was a stupid question as soon as she asked it. Rick Stetler had a knack for breaking computers. Reluctantly, she grabbed a keyboard and headed up to his office.

Even though the snake was fake, Rick refused to touch it and prodded it with the corner of the keyboard as though it was real and he was making sure it was dead.

Emmie walked in to see what the problem was and immediately saw the mangled rubber snake on the desk and the keyboard still in Rick's hands. His coffee mug had been knocked over and the contents spilled on the desk and floor along with several papers.

Emmie couldn't resist one jab at the steamed IAB agent. "Sir, how can you  
waste perfectly good coffee? Frank Tripp is gonna have a stroke!"

She swore there was steam coming out of Rick's ears and thought it best not to pursue the matter any further. Emmie tried hard not to laugh as she silently replaced the keyboard and took the carcass with her. When she got back to her desk, she thumb-tacked the snake to the wall like a trophy. "Tyler, you're not going to believe this!"

_[__**Author's Note:**__ Emmie Stockburne has been borrowed from JagLady with permission. Be sure to read more about Emmie Stockburne's adventures with Rick Stetler in JagLady's story – "Computer Calls," ]_

-----OO-----

After dealing with Stetler, Horatio had stopped and picked up some hotdogs for them to eat in the park. Madison loved hotdogs and ate her fill then decided to explore nearby while Horatio watched from the picnic table.

After a little while, she came running up to him. "Uncle Ratio, there's a man sleeping over there under a bush." She pointed to the bush in question.

Madison had always been told to beware of strangers and Horatio knew all too well about the dark side of humanity as he went to investigate. He expected to find a homeless person or a drunk sleeping it off. But instead, it was a dead body. He called it in and waited for the police and his team to arrive and secure the area.

"Madison, we're going to wait over here and let the man sleep okay." Horatio softly explained as he lead Madison away from the area. He was sure Susie would have some choice words for him when she found out Madison had found a corpse.

After his CSI team arrived, Horatio and Madison stood on the sidelines watching them do their job. Madison quickly noticed that everyone had their own forensic kit.

"Uncle Ratio, why does everyone have a suitcase?" She innocently asked.

Horatio smiled as he explained, "Those aren't regular suitcases. They have special tools for collecting evidence so the CSI's can catch the bad guys."

He watched Madison's curiosity at everything happening around her. "Can I get one?" She pleaded. "Please? I want to play CSI."

Madison suddenly wanted to be a CSI too.

Horatio figured that if Madison thought it was all a game, then maybe she wouldn't be traumatized by finding a dead body so he agreed. With the team busy investigating the scene, Horatio left in search of a little forensic kit for Madison. He stopped by a department store and explained to the sales lady what he was looking for.

The lady smiled, "I have just the thing." She pulled out a small makeup case that opened up just like the larger forensic cases did. "Will this do?"

Horatio was surprised. "Yes, that's perfect." He paid for the case and left.

As he handed the case to Madison, Horatio promised he'd get her some stuff to put in it. She smiled excitedly as she looked over the empty case. Horatio knew her attention span wouldn't last long on an empty box so he decided a trip to a little carnival would be just the thing to take her mind off of everything that had happened. He hadn't been to a carnival in ages and was surprised how much he enjoyed himself.

Madison seemed to especially like riding the Carousel and particularly the Zebra. Horatio couldn't help but wish he'd had a camera to catch it for eternity. He knew she would grow up so quick.

After riding the carousel several times, Horatio was finally able to convince Madison to visit the other rides and games. He managed to win her a stuffed lion at the firing range, when he had tried his luck, and finally, she looked to be slowing down. Or so he thought until she saw the cotton candy stand.

"Cotton candy!" Madison exclaimed excitedly as she jumped up and down. "Can I have some – please?"

"Okay." Horatio was a pushover and he knew it. After paying for the purple (not blue or pink – it had to be purple) cotton candy, Horatio got another phone call.

"Yes Rick." Horatio was really tempted to ignore the call, when he glanced at the caller ID, but then reasoned it might be something important.

"You're where?" Horatio quickly looked around. "How did you know I was here?"

"I had Tyler look up your GPS on the Hummer," Rick explained. "I'm in the parking lot right now."

Horatio made a mental note to tell Tyler not to do that anymore for Rick. If it was important, he was only a phone call away.

"Okay, we're headed that way." Horatio closed the phone then picked up Madison and her stuffed lion and started back to the car. She was too busy eating to complain. Rick was easy to spot and Horatio walked over to see what he wanted.

"What is so important Rick that I have to drop everything?" He asked.

"You sure picked a busy time to take off Horatio. Anyways, I'm still waiting for my car to be released from the crime scene. I don't think Delko has any intention of rushing it but I need my car!" The volume of Rick's voice escalated with each word and Horatio knew he was unhappy about the situation.

Realizing this was going to be a long conversation, Horatio sat Madison down while he argued with Rick over crime scene protocols. Madison might have been young but she could still tell that Rick was a meanie. Rick still had the driver's side door open to his borrowed car and Madison could see his sports jacket draped across the seat. The mixture of heat and cotton candy was beginning to make her nauseous and she also discovered that cotton candy was very sticky. Madison didn't like the meanie yelling at her uncle so she threw the leftover candy onto Rick's jacket to get even. She wanted to go home now and whined the same to Horatio who was more than happy to accommodate her.

"We'll talk about this tomorrow Rick." Horatio kept walking with Madison in his arms.

By the time Horatio arrived home, Madison was fast asleep in the back seat so he gently carried her inside doing his best not to wake her. After wiping down her hands and face with a wash cloth, he left her on the bed to rest and returned to the Hummer for the rest of their stuff. Once back inside, he was able to locate some white, reflective stick-on letters in a drawer and spelled CSI on Madison's little case. He figured tomorrow they would get some toys to put in it.

-----OO-----


	3. Chapter 3

**CSI Miami – The Littlest CSI  
_By: Celtic Lady  
_**

**Genre: **Humor  
**Pairing(s): **None  
**Chapter(s):** 3 of 8  
**Characters: **General cast plus Madison Keaton.  
**Rating: **T (age 13+)

**Summary: **Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.

* * *

The next morning, Horatio woke up and found himself looking into the face of a stuffed penguin. He knew what that meant – someone had no doubt climbed into bed with him during the night. As he wiped the sleep from his eyes, Madison woke and immediately jumped onto his stomach causing a groan to escape his mouth.

"What are we doing today?" She eagerly asked of Horatio.

Horatio wasn't expecting the stomach punch as Madison sat down hard. "I think I'll be recovering from a hernia." He gently pushed her off of him and got dressed.

"We'll go to the beach a little later today." He had thought about making breakfast but then decided to take the easy way out and eat out. When they returned, he went ahead and made the bed while removing the various lizards and frogs that Madison had left there when she was playing. Horatio couldn't help but smile as he remembered the story Emmie had told him about Rick and a fake snake. For a brief moment, he was tempted to confiscate one of plastic animals for future entertainment purposes but then decided against it.

After the house was in order, to the beach they went. Madison was wearing her sky blue bikini and had insisted they bring her CSI case 'just in case' which brought a smile to Horatio's face. He was already sizing her up for a potential future CSI. Madison was having fun playing in the water and sand while Horatio relaxed on a lounge chair in the shade of a palm tree. A light breeze blew through the trees keeping the temperature very comfortable and it was a beautiful day for a trip to the beach. Madison stayed busy bringing shells up to Horatio for him to see and equally as often, he would smear her down with suntan lotion. This was a life Horatio could grow accustomed to very easily.

After awhile, Madison was occupied with making a sand castle next to him so Horatio decided to join her and help. They were just putting on the final touches when Horatio's phone rang. It was Stetler.

"Horatio, I need you to come and set your people straight. They still haven't released my car!" Stetler was fuming.

"Rick . . ." Horatio thought for a moment. They had been purposely yanking his chain knowing that while he was so mad over his car, he'd never suspect the surprise birthday party they were preparing for him. Horatio was still bewildered as to why they were giving Rick, of all people, a party but everyone seemed excited about the idea so Horatio had agreed.

"Rick, let me call Eric and get right back with you." Horatio explained to Rick's dismay.

"Don't make me wait too long Horatio." Rick hung up the phone before Horatio could respond.

Horatio then dialed Eric to see how things were going.

"Hey H, I was just going to call you," Delko began. "We think there is a second chop shop and I'm with Frank trying to track it down."

Horatio didn't like hearing this. "What makes you think that?"

"High end cars are still being stolen fairly regularly even after we closed the first shop. Things should have slowed down after that but didn't so now we're trying to see if it's part of the same ring."

"Hmmm." It sounded like things were getting busy at work and that he might have to cut his vacation short. "Eric, how is the party coming along?"

Eric chuckled, "We're hiding everything in the trunk of Rick's car. It's going to be a blast!"

"I see." Horatio knew he needed an excuse to give Rick but couldn't think of one. "I think I'll drop by for a minute and you can update me on everything."

"Great." Eric smiled, as he hung up the phone, and turned to Frank. "H is stopping by to see what we've got."

"You tell him we got nothing yet?" Frank inquired.

-----OO-----

Horatio's return call to Rick Stetler seemed to placate him for the moment. Rick figured Horatio would arrange for the release of his car and was satisfied.

After he finished the call, Horatio finished helping Madison with the sand castle. He took a twig and poked it through a leaf to a little flag which he put on top of their building wonder. Madison clapped her hands with delight – it was perfect!

"Madison, I need to run by work. Do you think you've had enough of the beach?" Horatio looked over the top of his sunglasses to gage her reaction. She was clearly disappointed.

"Hmmm. I suppose we can stay a little while longer." The smile returned to Madison's face as she gave him a big hug.

She spent the rest of the morning playing at the water's edge under Horatio's watchful eye. After awhile, she pleaded with him to let her go into the water. The mid-day sun was getting warmer and he could understand her desire to get wet but wouldn't let her wade alone. He finally gave in and joined her in the bright sun as they both got their feet wet. Ultimately, he waded out into deeper water, with Madison in his arms, so they both could cool down a little. Madison was in heaven as she splashed around pretending to swim while Horatio held her.

It didn't take long for Horatio to burn, even with suntan lotion, so he felt they should probably call it a day and get something to eat. He knew he was hungry so surely Madison must be too. After collecting their stuff, Horatio hoisted Madison up onto his shoulders and off they went in search of food. He knew of several restaurants but finding one with kids food, that Madison would like, would be a challenge. He had discovered she was somewhat of a picky eater. After walking past several restaurants, they finally found one and settled in with a good meal.

It was early afternoon before Horatio actually made it to work. Feeling the chill of the air conditioning in the office, Horatio put his lab coat on Madison to cover her swimsuit and keep her warm. The last thing he needed was a sick kid.

Madison had brought her CSI case in with her and was carrying it as she walked down the hallway with her uncle. She was definitely turning heads.

Maxine Valera was the first to notice the little CSI following Horatio around.

"Oh my God! She is so cute!" She exclaimed as Madison grinned at the attention. Maxine immediately took out her cell phone and snapped a photo.

Horatio really didn't want to take Madison with him while he talked to Stetler and since Valera was so taken by Madison, he thought he'd take a chance.

"Ah Valera, I need to ask for a favor. I have to go talk to Rick Stetler, would you mind watching Madison for a little while?"

She was elated, "Sure! I'd love to." Valera took Madison's hand, "C'mon kiddo, I'll show you around." She couldn't wait to show the little girl to Natalia and Calleigh.

Meanwhile, Horatio headed to Stetler's office. He knew Rick would be furious and took a deep breath to prepare himself before entering the office.

"There you are!" Rick jumped up from his chair, almost knocking it over in the process. "I've been waiting for my car!" He was fuming and knew that Horatio was purposely making him wait.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I want to thank everyone for your kind reviews.


	4. Chapter 4

**CSI Miami – The Littlest CSI  
_By: Celtic Lady  
_**

**Genre: **Humor  
**Pairing(s): **None  
**Chapter(s):** 4 of 8  
**Characters: **General cast plus Madison Keaton.  
**Rating: **T (age 13+)

**Summary: **Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.

* * *

Valera escorted Madison into the DNA lab, "Natalia, look who I have." She led the child behind the table and into view. "Isn't she adorable?"

Natalia laughed when she spied H. Caine on the lab coat and saw the mini CSI case in her hand.

"Are you going to be a CSI like us?" She couldn't help but ask.

Madison smiled back as she nodded. "Uncle Ratio got me this!" She held up the little black makeup box with CSI on the side.

"Cool! What do you have in it so far?" Natalia asked.

Madison opened the case to show off her plastic bugs. "Uncle Ratio is gonna get me some stuff to put in it just like you have."

Valera mumbled under her breath, "If Stetler gives him a break."

Natalia looked up. "Why? Is he being a trouble maker?"

Rolling her eyes, Valera replied, "Is he ever 'not' a troublemaker?"

Natalia smiled and turned her attention back to Madison. "Well, I have something for you right now Madison."

She opened a container and pulled out some Q-tips. "Every CSI has some swabs in her kit." She leaned over and added the swabs to the box. "Now you have some too!"

Madison was excited to get her first item and closed the case. "Thank you."

"I'm showing her the lab so I guess we should get going." Valera held out her hand, "C'mon sweetie, I have lots to show you yet."

Natalia grinned as she waved goodbye to both of them.

As they walked down the hallway to Calleigh's area, Valera and Madison ran into Frank and Eric who were disagreeing about something. Valera couldn't help but think to herself, _"God. Do you two disagree on everything?"_

"Hey guys, look who I have." Frank and Eric immediately recognized the little red-haired girl and did an about-face on their attitude.

"Madison! You ready to go catch some bad guys?" Frank enthusiastically asked with a broad grin on his face.

A blush came over Madison's cheeks as she smiled but bashfully didn't answer. She recognized Frank, he was Uncle Ratio's friend and offered no resistance as Frank picked her up so she was eye level with the group.

"I see you've got your kit!" Nodded Frank towards the little case she was clutching. Madison's bashfulness quickly disappeared as she proudly showed them her box complete with newly acquired 'swabs'.

"Every CI has swabs!" Madison proudly offered as she mispronounced the name.

Eric chuckled, "That's right."

"We've gotta go guys." Valera took Madison from Frank. "We're on our way to see Calleigh."

"That should be fun," grinned Frank as he playfully waved goodbye to Madison.

Valera and Madison wasn't even out of hearing range when Frank and Eric continued their argument. Valera just shook her head.

-----OO-----

It was several minutes before Horatio could get a word in edgewise. With no child around to hide behind, Horatio was fair game for Rick's verbal assault.

"I don't know what little game you're playing Horatio, but I want my car released now! Don't make me go over your head."

Horatio knew he couldn't stall Stetler any longer and took out his cell phone. "Eric, have Stetler's car ready by 3 p.m. for him to pick up." He listened to Eric's response and replied, "I know but he needs his car so put a rush on it."

Stetler was quite please with himself, "There, that wasn't so hard was it?" He sat down behind his desk and continued to gloat.

"Is there anything else Rick?" Horatio somehow knew he'd regret asking and wasn't disappointed.

"As a matter of fact, there is." Avoiding eye contact, Rick continued, "I spoke with your supervisor and your vacation time is cancelled until this case is over."

It took all the strength Horatio had to keep from strangling Stetler at that moment as pictures came to mind of Horatio with his hands solidly around Stetler's neck choking the life out of him.

In turn, Horatio's clenched jaw did not go unnoticed by Stetler who swallowed hard at the realization that he may have overstepped his authority.

With a forced calmness, Horatio turned and left without saying a word. He knew there was no use arguing about the matter. He went directly to the garage where Eric was already in the process of moving the party decorations.

"Eric, what is the update on the second chop shop?"

Eric looked up from the trunk, "Frank is doing some leg work while I try to collect fingerprints and evidence from the dismantled cars."

Horatio knew it was a needle in a haystack and they'd need all the clues they could get. "Finding much?"

"No, not really." Eric shook his head. "The fingerprints match the perps in custody, so we have a good case against them, but nothing points to a ringleader."

That meant they had more work to do and Horatio figured he'd better get up to speed on the case since he was now officially off vacation. He went in search of Madison and Valera. With no available babysitter, he knew he'd have to bring Madison in to work tomorrow. His only hope was that Valera might be willing to watch Madison some more while he worked on the case.

-----OO-----


	5. Chapter 5

**CSI Miami – The Littlest CSI  
**_By: Celtic Lady  
_

**Genre: **Humor  
**Pairing(s): **None  
**Chapter(s):** 5 of 8  
**Characters: **General cast plus Madison Keaton.  
**Rating: **T (age 13+)

**Summary: **Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.

* * *

Calleigh was admiring the little CSI with her kit. "So Horatio's already recruiting you is he?"

Madison smiled gleefully at the mention of her uncle.

"He's with Stetler so I'm giving her the grand tour." Valera explained. Just then her phone rang.

"We're down with Calleigh." After a pause Valera replied OK and then hung up the phone and explained, "Horatio's on his way down."

"So what all did you do today Madison?" Calleigh asked.

"We went to the beach and I made a sand castle. Then we went swimming and then Uncle Ratio got me a hotdog." Madison happily explained their whole day.

"Sounds like you've been really busy." Calleigh teased.

Horatio walked in just in time to catch the end of Madison's explanation. "Hotdogs and chili dogs!" He put his hand on top of Madison's head. "Did you tell them about the sand castle?"

"Why yes she did." Calleigh offered with a smile.

Horatio picked up Madison and gave her the bad news. "Madison, I'm going to have to go back to work so tomorrow we'll be hanging around here okay."

Madison didn't seem to mind at all. "I can be a CIS just like you."

Horatio smiled at her mispronunciation of CSI and was glad she didn't mind. "We can bring all your toys too so you don't get bored."

Turning his attention to Calleigh and Valera, he added, "I guess I'll see everyone first thing in the morning. Oh, and Valera, if I need your help watching Madison, do you think that would be a problem?"

Valera shook her head no. "Not at all. I'd love to."

"Great." Horatio decided it was time to get Madison home and out of her swimsuit.

"Carry on ladies."

He walked out of the room as Madison waved goodbye to Calleigh and Valera.

After he was out of hearing range, Valera piped up. "You know what. I think I'm going to stop by the toy store tonight and get her something for her kit. I think she'd like that."

Calleigh agreed. "You know, that is a great idea. We can put the word out and get her all sorts of things. She'll look just like us when we're through."

They both agreed it was a good plan and proceeded to tell everyone else in the office of their idea.

-----OO-----

The next morning, Horatio gathered up several of Madison's toys to take with him to the office but he knew it wouldn't be enough to keep her occupied for the entire day. He'd have to think of something – he knew Valera couldn't watch her all day.

Upon arriving at work, Horatio was able to watch over Madison for about an hour before the demands of the job made it too difficult. Luckily, Valera's day was starting off slow and she was available to help.

Maxine couldn't wait for Horatio to leave so she could show Madison her surprise. Once he was safely out of sight, she pulled out a bag from under the desk.

"Madison, guess what I have for you?"

The little girl ran over eager to look in the bag.

Valera pulled out a smaller, kid's version, of Horatio's lab coat with 'M. Keaton' on the name tag. Clipped to the lapel was a fake Miami-Dade I.D. card complete with Madison's photo which Valera had taken the day before with her cell phone camera.

"Now you're officially one of us!" Valera announced.

Madison was thrilled as she put the coat on.

"Let's see, now what should we do?" Valera thought for a moment. She had a couple of items that needed analyzed so she got a stool for Madison to stand on and walked her through the whole process.

"Now I know this looks like regular water I'm putting in here but it's really not." She placed the specimen in the vial and added a clear solution to it. Once the agitator adequately mixed the contents, Valera placed it in the trace analyzer and had Madison press the green button.

The child watched in wonderment as the small vial was selected and the processing began. Shortly thereafter, the printer spit out a report of the finding.

"Can you get that printout for me sweetie?" Valera pointed to the printer.

Madison eagerly jumped down from the stool and retrieved the paper for Valera.

"What does it say?" Madison quizzed.

Valera looked over the report. "It says that there were explosives around where that swab was wiped."

Knowing Madison wouldn't understand how important that could be, Valera added, "We may have just solved the case!"

Madison jumped up and down upon hearing the good news.

"Yaaaaaa."

Valera picked up her phone. "Now I have to tell the detective what I found."

She dialed Frank Tripp. "Frank, I got the results from your smuggling case. It tested positive for explosives."

Then it was on to the next sample to be analyzed. Madison didn't seem to mind being the "official button pusher and report collector." In fact, she liked being involved in the process.

All was going well until a new box of items arrived for analysis with a "RUSH" order. Valera knew she'd need to give it all her attention and couldn't watch Madison anymore.

She dialed someone on her cell.

"Natalia, how's your workload?" She waited for an answer then explained, "I just got a rush order and I'm watching Madison. Do you think you can take her for awhile?" Madison watched quietly as Valera continued, "Great. I'll bring her right over."

After hanging up, Valera explained to Madison, "I have to get this done really fast so Natalia is going to watch you for a little while okay."

Madison nodded and jumped down from the stool and grabbed her CSI case. She didn't mind at all.

-----OO-----


	6. Chapter 6

**CSI Miami – The Littlest CSI**  
_By: Celtic Lady  
_

**Genre: **Humor  
**Pairing(s): **None  
**Chapter(s):** 6 of 8  
**Characters: **General cast plus Madison Keaton.  
**Rating: **T (age 13+)

**Summary: **Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.

* * *

Natalia met Valera half way since she needed to deliver some reports to Eric. Both she and Madison then walked downstairs to the garage where Eric was dusting car parts for prints.

"Here are the results from your last batch of prints. Got any more for me?"

Eric pointed to the table and continued dusting.

Madison thought it odd what Eric was doing and tugged on Natalia's lab coat.

After Natalia bent down, she asked in a low whisper, "Why is he putting make up on that?

"Well, I always thought he was a bit strange," deadpanned Natalia while trying to stifle a laugh.

Eric looked up with an embarrassed expression on his face. "Its not makeup, it's dusting powder," he tried to explain. Realizing that the little girl was Horatio's niece, he quickly added, "Here, let me show you."

He led Madison over to a box and told her to press her hands down on the lid. When she finished, he continued, "Now you left fingerprints there but we can't see them." He then dusted the area purposely using some hot pink dusting powder that someone had given him. Her palm prints quickly became visible.

"Wow!" To Madison it was like magic.

Eric then took some tape and lifted the print, securing it for eternity. He pulled a marker out of his pocket and wrote 'Madison' on the side and handed to the little girl.

"That's your hand print."

Even Natalia was impressed. "Now you have your own hand print." We can put that in your CSI case with your other stuff."

Madison eagerly opened her case and added the print. But before she could close the case, Eric tossed in the pink dusting powder.

"Just don't get this all over you okay or 'H' will be really mad at me." He grinned.

"That was really nice of you," Natalia added.

Eric shrugged his shoulders, "Someone gave me that and I just can't get into the pink color. That's a girl's dusting powder." He chided.

Natalia gave him a smug grin at his sexist remark.

"Well, I'll get started on these prints." She held up the new stack that Eric had provided.

Once she and Madison got back to her lab, she dug around in her purse and pulled out an old makeup brush. "Here, you'll need this to go with your dusting powder."

Madison was elated. She was getting all sorts of presents.

-----OO-----

As the morning progressed on, Madison played contently with her plastic bugs off to the side and out of the way. Natalia kept a close watch on her just in case.

It was a pleasant surprise when Calleigh entered the lab and inquired, "Is this your new helper?" She smiled as she looked over at Madison.

"Yeah." Natalia revealed. "We're learning all about fingerprints."

Madison then had to proudly show her palm print to Calleigh.

"Eric made that for her." Natalia explained. "He doesn't like pink dusting powder because it's a 'girls' dusting powder." She made little ditto gestures with her hands to emphasize 'girls'.

Calleigh could see the pink dusting powder container in Madison's kit and pouted, "I gave him that dusting powder."

"Oops!" Natalia professed awkwardly.

Changing the subject, Calleigh noticed the stack of prints Natalia was processing. "Are those prints from the chop shop?"

"Yeah." Natalia sighed. "And there's more to come."

Calleigh quickly offered, "Well why don't I take Madison for awhile so you can get them done."

Elated, Natalia replied, "Would you? Cause I'm starting to get backlogged."

"Why I wouldn't mind at all!" Calleigh extended her hand to Madison, "C'mon Sweetie. Let's go play in my office okay."

Madison quickly threw all her plastic bugs into her case and took Calleigh's hand. With her other hand, Calleigh gave a little wave goodbye to Natalia and they headed downstairs. She stopped momentarily at the vending machines to get some juice and snacks for her and Madison to drink and eat while they were down there.

"I've got a big surprise for you in my office." Calleigh explained as they continued on.

Madison grinned. Everyone was being so nice and she was getting all sorts of presents.

Calleigh set their juice down on a little conference table in her office and went to her desk. She pulled a bright, neon green, squirt gun out of the drawer, fully loaded, and handed it to Madison complete with a clip on holster to hold it.

"Now don't you be shooting me with this!" Calleigh emphasized. "This is only for shooting bad guys."

She helped Madison clip the gun onto her pants.

"There. Now you have a gun just like me and your Uncle Horatio."

"Cool!" Madison pulled the gun from her holster and pretended to shoot bad guys.

-----OO-----


	7. Chapter 7

**CSI Miami – The Littlest CSI**  
_By: Celtic Lady  
_

**Genre: **Humor  
**Pairing(s): **None  
**Chapter(s):** 7 of 8  
**Characters: **General cast plus Madison Keaton.  
**Rating: **T (age 13+)

**Summary: **Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.

* * *

It took Horatio several minutes to finally find Madison to take her to lunch.

Having tracked her down to Calleigh, Horatio was told that Alexx Woods was now watching her and proceeded on to the next person in line.

Each person had to fill him in on what they and Madison had done so that when he poked his head into the Morgue, he hoped that Madison wasn't assisting with an autopsy.

He was greatly relieved to find Madison sitting on Dr. Wood's lap, in her office, as she read a story to the little girl.

"Getting hungry?" Horatio asked cheerfully.

Without missing a beat, Alexx replied, "I'm starving!" while knowing full well that Horatio was talking to Madison. Her wide smile gave her away.

Horatio smiled broadly in return, "Well let's go then. Where would you ladies like to eat?"

-----OO-----

Eric and Ryan returned to the chop shop in the hopes of finding something they missed. The run-down warehouse offered little in information and they ultimately left empty handed.

As Ryan opened the car door to leave, he spotted someone watching them from across the street.

"Eric, we have an audience."

"You think he saw something?" Eric glanced over at the man as well.

Suddenly, the man bolted away at a full run having been discovered. Eric and Ryan followed in pursuit as they ran down the alley after the man but he jumped into a waiting car and sped from sight before they could get a license number.

Ryan then answered Eric's question, "Yeah, I think he knew something alright."

They both returned to the office and informed Horatio and Frank.

-----OO-----

Around mid-afternoon, Ryan poked his head in to the Morgue to say hello to Dr. Woods, as he often did, and spotted Madison playing with her toys. Alexx was elated to see Ryan.

"Ryan, I'm so glad to see you."

Right away, he knew something was up as he cautiously inquired, "Why is that?"

"I need to start an autopsy but . . ." she nodded over to the little girl, "I have a guest. Can you take her for a little while?"

This was easy and the relief was obvious on his face. "Oh yeah, no problem."

Alexx laughed, "You seem relieved."

Ryan smiled. "I knew you wanted something but figured it was work related." He paused as a blush came over his face. "I heard you got a decomp in and was really hoping it didn't involve a smelly corpse."

Touching his shoulder, Alexx smiled, "Ryan, I wouldn't do that to you unless it was absolutely necessary."

Ryan left with Madison and took her to his office where he too had some presents for her.

"Madison, I got you some stuff for your CSI case."

He showed her the kids sunglasses which remarkably resembled Horatio's. "Just because we're CSI's doesn't mean we can't look cool. Right?"

Madison tried them on and smiled at Ryan. "Cool."

Ryan then brought out a kids digital camera. "Another thing CSI's do is take pictures." He quickly took Madison's photo and showed it to her. "See."

Madison smiled.

She then politely thanked him and added the items to her case.

Before the day ended, Frank Tripp took his turn babysitting as well and of course he also had something for Madison – a toy cell phone and badge.

Madison looked at the toy phone and pressed the button making it ring just like a real one. She immediately began pretending she was making important phone calls. Frank took this as a good sign that she liked it.

When Horatio came to take her home, he had no idea she had accumulated so many items.

-----OO-----

* * *

**Only one Chapter to go. Thank you all for your kind reviews. I'm glad you like the story. Oh, and the last chapter is the best.**


	8. Chapter 8

**CSI Miami – The Littlest CSI**  
_By: Celtic Lady  
_

**Genre: **Humor  
**Pairing(s): **None  
**Chapter(s):** 8 of 8  
**Characters: **General cast plus Madison Keaton.  
**Rating: **T (age 13+)

**Summary: **Madison Keaton unknowingly helps her uncle Horatio solve a crime.

* * *

The next day, with Madison dressed and fed, Horatio began his daily routine of gathering toys for her to play with while Madison eagerly grabbed her little CSI case.

She watched her uncle closely as they walked out the door to his Hummer.

After he secured her in her car seat, the first thing she saw was Horatio put on his sunglasses and start the car.

Madison immediately opened her CSI case and put on her own sunglasses. "We're cool," she spoke prompting Horatio to glance in the rear view mirror to see what she was talking about.

A broad grin came over his face as he agreed. "You bet, Madison, we're cool!" He wondered where the sunglasses came from but she did look pretty good in them. The fact that they looked identical to his, did not go unnoticed either.

En route to work, Horatio's phone rang.

The caller ID revealed who it was. "Yes Frank."

He listened to what Frank had to say. It was good news – they had found the 2nd chop shop.

"Great. I'll meet you there."

As soon as he hung up, Horatio heard a phone ring from the backseat. A quick look revealed Madison conversing with an imaginary friend on her toy phone.

As soon as she finished her fun call, Horatio spoke up, "Madison, I have to make a stop before we go to the office okay."

"Okay," Madison replied and then continued making pretend phone calls. Horatio smiled.

It didn't take long to reach the address. With her little CSI case in tow, Madison held Horatio's hand while he approached the secure area. She saw him flash his badge to the uniformed officer to let her know he was suppose to be there.

Immediately, Madison opened her case and clipped on her green water pistol, just like Calleigh showed her, and pulled out her own little badge which she too showed the female officer. Both Horatio and the officer grinned at how serious and professional Madison was presenting herself. Horatio took a quick glance and realized that she had quite a few things in her little kit.

Frank spotted them and walked over. "How you doing Madison?" He immediately recognized the toy badge he'd given her along with the Horatio Sunglasses and green squirt gun. "Looks like you're ready to catch some bad guys!"

She looked up at Frank and grinned. "I'm a CSI."

"Boy you sure are!" Frank exclaimed as he held up the police tape so Horatio and Madison could enter. Before they went any further, Horatio picked Madison up. "I better carry you the rest of the way."

Eric and Calleigh were busy dusting for prints and taking photos inside the makeshift garage while Ryan was questioning an onlooker with information to offer. Horatio checked out the garage and looked around. It looked like everyone was busy doing their jobs and Horatio wanted to speak to the informant so he returned Madison to the nearby Hummer. "Madison, I need you to stay right here for a moment while I talk to someone. Okay? Do you think you can do that for me?"

Madison nodded and opened her CSI case. She pretended to dust the Hummer's tires for prints just like she saw Eric doing. Natalia grinned upon noticing and nudged Eric as she nodded towards Madison. Impressed, he motioned for Calleigh to come over, which she did, and showed her the junior CSI. Calleigh couldn't resist snapping several photos of the unsuspecting child who suddenly looked up and caught her.

Calleigh was quite surprised to see Madison pull her own camera out of her case and start taking photos as well. "My, she has everything in there." She turned to Natalia, "Did you notice the Horatio Sunglasses?"

Natalia and Calleigh laughed.

It took Horatio longer than he expected but Madison seemed quite content to sit on the sidelines and watch. He took advantage of her curiosity and conversed with Frank on the case.

After he was satisfied with everything, Horatio and Madison continued on to the office. By that afternoon, news had reached Rick Stetler about the latest discovery.

"Horatio, I don't want to question your judgment, but do you really think it was a good idea to take a child to a crime scene?" Stetler inquired sternly.

"If I didn't know better, I'd think we were running a child care center than a crime lab," he chided sarcastically knowing it would irritate Horatio.

Horatio smiled as he worked diligently to keep his anger in check. "You run your office Rick, and I'll run mine."

Somehow, Stetler just couldn't do that as he needled Horatio further. "I would hate to think that the crime scene was compromised from a child running around. It makes me wonder just how serious you are about bringing these criminals to justice."

Horatio continued walking without offering a return comment. He knew no good would come from arguing with Stetler.

"I've written it up in my report Horatio. I fear there may be some disciplinary action needed if you don't straighten up the lab and drop the babysitting center. I must say I'm disappointed in the lab's performance thus far on this case."

Horatio couldn't take it anymore as he did an about-face and turned to face Stetler. "Do what you have to do Rick. The lab is solid and I stand behind them." As an afterthought, he added, "Perhaps, since 'you' feel we are not pursuing every avenue to solve the case, we should take another look at your stolen car. Bring it back to the garage and I'll have Eric give it another look over."

This didn't set well with Stetler at all. "What! I need that car and I know you're only doing this to spite me. Don't play games with me Horatio. I have friends in high places and I'd hate to have to pull in some favors just to put you in your place."

Madison was quite capable of understanding that Stetler was yelling at her uncle because of her and she didn't like it one little bit. With Stetler's voice escalating, she knew he was getting more angry and decided to take care of it herself.

A quick draw of her squirt gun and Stetler found himself wearing a pair of wet slacks that suspiciously looked like he had wet his pants. The timing couldn't have been better as he yelled at her only to have his own boss walk by and stop him.

"Rick, please tell me you're not yelling at a child."

Stetler didn't know what to say as he tried to explain. "No, I was yelling at Horatio not the kid."

The pouting little girl would seem to show otherwise and Rick's boss was not blind to that fact. "Well, don't do it in front of the kid. You're scaring her!"

Horatio quickly scooped Madison up and walked away knowing that Rick would be dealt with by his boss. This was a perfect exit from the situation.

-----OO-----

Friday had finally come, and although that should have been a good thing with the weekend coming up, it was far from it. The second chop shop burned down overnight and somehow the exterior was not totally photographed through an oversight. The team assembled in a conference room to discuss what they had so far.

Eric explained that they had several fingerprints that matched some of the people in custody so they were sure it was part of the same ring. Frank mentioned that they were still looking for the man who ran from Ryan and Eric but without more to go on, it would be a needle in a haystack. They still didn't have the ringleader.

To make matter's worst, having Madison on the site, may have indeed distracted the technicians causing the necessary photographs to not be taken. When Madison heard what they were looking for, she quickly spoke up.

"Uncle Ratio, I took pictures outside. I took lots of pictures." She immediately opened her little CSI case and pulled out her digital camera to show them.

A broad grin came over Ryan, who had originally given her the camera. "You know, she just may have caught something we didn't." He took the camera from Madison, "I promise to bring this right back okay."

He rushed to the media lab and began processing the photos. Just like a good CSI, Madison had taken pictures of everything in sight. But what really stood out was an old pickup truck that was no longer at the burned down garage. Ryan was able to zoom in on the license plate in the photo and write it down. A quick check in the computer gave him not only a name, but the DMV photo showed that it was their suspect who had fled the first scene. This was the break they needed as he rushed back to inform Frank Tripp and Horatio.

"Looks like Madison found our needle." He explained as he showed the photos to the team. Eric also recognized the man from the driver's license photo.

With the help of one of the defendants who wanted to make a deal for shorter jail time, they were able to quickly close the case and forward the evidence to the DA for prosecution.

-----OO-----

Everyone sat around the conference table eating cake and ice cream as they congratulated Madison for solving the case. The party decorations were hung around the room, music was playing from a CD player, and everyone was having a great time when Stetler poked his head in to see what was going on.

Remembering that this was suppose to be a party for Rick's birthday, Horatio immediately improvised and wished Rick a happy birthday.

Although the cake read 'Happy Birthday Rick', he knew something wasn't right. "If this party is for me, why didn't you invite me before eating all the cake?"

"Hmmm." Horatio thought for a moment. The gang had finally informed him that they wanted a party and Rick was the only one having a birthday anytime soon. They merely needed a situation to celebrate and Rick's birthday was handy. But with Madison solving the case, they decided to celebrate that instead.

"Must have been an oversight." Not wanting to hold a grudge, Horatio handed Rick a plate. "There's plenty left, help yourself."

Everyone smiled and wished Rick a happy birthday.

The End


End file.
